Despite stricter scrutiny, US approves more H-1B visas this year

MUMBAI: The US has approved a higher number of H-1B applications (both for initial visas and visa extensions for continued employment) this year, showing that the demand for these work visas continues unabated. This is a relief to Indians, who are the dominant holders of H-1B visas, especially after processing regulations got more stringent post-2015 .
While in 2015, 2.88 lakh applications were approved (95.7%) by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) , for fiscal 2019, the figure touched 3.89 lakh (84.8%), up from last year’s 3.35 lakh (84.5%).
The latest statistics for the fiscal 2019 (the 12-month period ended September 30) were recently released by USCIS.